Taijiya & the Beast
by Metallic Sharpie
Summary: The castle loomed over the trees, covered in frost as high winds whipped dangerously through it's towers and into the black forest. How did such a impressive building go unnoticed for so long? Perhaps the girl found shelter here. With Hiraikotsu clutched in one hand, the young woman ran into the dark courtyard, unaware of the beast that awaited her within the crumbling walls.
1. Prologue

Taijiya & the Beast

 **Prologue**

Once Upon a Time

'Thoughts'

 _Flashbacks_

"Speaking"

Original Publish Date: 4/4/2017  
Minor Edits: 3/26/2018

 **Once upon a time** , there was a beautiful wind sorceress by the name of Kagura. Though as powerful as she may be, her father, the dark spider half-demon, Naraku, held her heart in a rusty cage.

If she talked back, he would squeeze it.

If she tried to disobey him, he would squeeze it.

If she attempted to escape, he promised he could crush it until it was unrecognizable mass of muscle and blood.

She wasn't deterred. One day, she knew she would take her life back, and the life of her sister, Kanna, the mirror demon. But that meant she needed to pursue the help of others, who in this land was strong enough to battle her father and be victorious?

The answer seemed obvious. The Inu no Taisho, Touga, and his two sons, Sesshomaru and Inuyasha, were the strongest beings who roamed this country, possibly even the world. Lord Touga was a reasonable youkai, he would see the threat Naraku was to his people, he would act, he would finish him.

Though it seemed fate had different plans for her as the great dog general succumbed to his wounds from a fierce battle with a dragon demon before she could appeal to him. Now what were her options? Inuyasha, he was a half-demon, and she doubted he had the resilience to take the spider on. Sesshomaru, however... he was just as strong as his father, if not more, and seemed to be taking his freshly minted title of the Lord of the West very seriously.

Kagura waited a few days before she approached him in a clearing under the midnight sky. 'What a beautiful man... So serious.' She warned him of Naraku, that he had been attacking the human villages that bordered the western lands... and he scoffed at her, told her he wouldn't spend his time fighting a worthless half-breed or protect the weak mortals that polluted his borders.

To say she was shocked would be an understatement, did he not see how this 'half-breed' was rampaging the country? What would his recently-deceased father think of this? He didn't care. If was not affecting him or his demon people, then it was not his concern. The wind witch cursed the demon before she took off to the skies, that is when she noticed a group of humans doing battle with some of Naraku's minions... and winning.

Her ruby eyes scrutinized the humans, "Who are you?"

The leader of the group seemed wary of her, but stood tall, his black eyes did not break away from her own, "We are Taijiya."

She smiled, "Let me help you."

And an alliance was born.

To think that the former Lord's son, Inuyasha, would soon join, bequeathed with Tessaiga... Then a priestess from another world with unmatched holy power, a monk with the wind tunnel in his hand, from a family Naraku had cursed long ago... It added a formidable power to the group that almost allowed her to hope, to believe she would be free.

Then the final battle came... and not only were they victorious, they didn't lose a single soldier. The gods truly favored their plight that day.

The only reincarnations that were left were Kanna, the illusionist her father tried to replace her with named Byakuya, and herself.

It was a glorious night of wine, food, and celebration... but Kagura was not done. Not yet, there was still one thing she needed to take care of. You see, while she had no negative opinion on humans before all this, she saw now that they fought and bled stronger than any demon she ever faced. It was no longer a wonder to her why the former Lord took a human mate. They were worthy of love and protection, and she couldn't help but remember the thousands that died just under the Western Lord's rule due to his youkai pride.

What a terrible way to die. His disregard for life reminded her of Naraku, and she couldn't let his sins go unpunished.

With Kanna and a bit of outside help, she trapped his mind to a rare, blue rose from a garden deep in his territory that saw more security during one of the spider's raids than a neighboring human town. If he cared for the flowers so much, his sanity would tied to its life. With every petal that fell, he would lose his grip on his mind and his youki. Each falling petal would turn him more into a base beast, ones that humans regard in the same way as he did to them.

With the help of Byakuya, she put the demon's castle under a veil, to be forgotten from history. There would _no_ legacy for Lord Sesshomaru and he will forever be 'the eldest son of Lord Touga, who cowered from Naraku and vanished without a trace in shame.'

Or not.

Kagura may be tough, but she was not as cruel as the spider. There was a way to break the curse. A rather simple solution really.

Love a human, and earn their love in return.

It didn't even have to be _in love_ , it could be romantic, parental, a deep friendship—she thought it was fair. She even reasoned that if a human was brave enough to weather the wind storms outside his castle, surely they were worthy for at least a bit of his time. Maybe one could help him realize his wrongs.

Unfortunately, it seemed that would not be case.

It had been 5 years since she placed the curse on the demon, and his pride and ego were still inflatable. His once-handsome humanoid appearance was gone, now he looked something like a silver werewolf with his golden eyes still as cold and passive as ever... and his intelligence was fading, she knew. It was pitiful.

He had his chance, the wind sorceress reasoned. She knew of four humans that stumbled through the castle gates, the first three never returned and the last one was severely malnourished and traumatized. She had Kanna let him forget his experience there before they dropped him at the town to heal, though she was a bit surprised the demon lord let this one escape. Perhaps there was a slight change happening, but it was far too late for him.

The rose only had at best till the coming of spring until the final petal falls and with it, the last bits of his sane mind, his crumbling, empty castle, and his precious pride.

 **End of Prologue**

 **Author's Note:** Guys, this story has been in my mind for like, no joke, 7 years. I wrote it down once and had something insane like 20k words and lost it all. I wasn't ever going to go back to it, but after seeing the movie a few weeks ago, I couldn't get it out of my freaking head. So here it is!

Why is this Sango and Sessh? Because I got like, 4 Sess/Rin stories already and another one possibly in the works. I need a different pairing! Also, this story isn't exactly going to play out like Beauty and the Beast as you can see, I didn't want Kagome or Rin as the typical beauties, Kagura is a demon so no, and Kikyo would have seemed out of place to me. I'm also not sure I could write a M/M pairing well…

Yeah, that's right. I'd ship Sessh with anyone. Lol

For the very few fans of this pairing, and anyone else who decided to take a chance and read this, I hope you enjoyed it so far! :D

 _ **NEW NOTE:**_ Changes were time curse has lasted and mentioning 'love in return'. How did I forget that line the first time? Jeez. lol.


	2. Sango, the taijiya

Taijiya & the Beast

Chapter 1

 **Sango, the taijiya**

 _Thought_

"Speaking"

Original Publish Date: 3/26/2018

"Thank you so much!"

Sango smiled as the rest of the villagers sang their praises, before turning to the short, elderly man. "Make sure to burn the body. You don't want its spirit to return."

The headman bowed, "Yes, of course!" He then pulled something from his sleeve, "Your payment and here, we thought maybe you would enjoy this. Your father mentioned you liked foreign things."

She took the larger bag and opened it, a unique smell flooded her senses. It smelled of something she swore Kagome brought once from her time, in one of those metallic cans. "What is this? Where did you get it?"

"A merchant offered it in exchange for some cooked food and bed for the night. He left before you arrived. His friend called it coffee, said you crush the beans and brew it with hot water, some add milk and sugar."

Sango took another deep breath of the nutty smell and smiled, _That's right_. She remembered it was too strong for Inuyasha, Miroku liked lots of cream, Shippou liked it too but he _did_ load it up with sugar. She preferred it lightly sweetened. The compound was very far from the coast, and to hear there was a foreign merchant this far out, she was curious! _Maybe I'll see them on the way back._ She secured the bag before shifting Hiraikotsu to a more comfortable position on her back, "I'm off then."

"Ahh, wait, what about the coin?" The elder tried to hand her the small bag of coin he had been holding.

"The coffee is enough." After all, the yokai she slayed wasn't much of a challenge and foreign items were expensive. She didn't feel right taking both, but the older man persisted, taking her hand and planting the purse of coins on it.

"Your people are a blessing, I will not have you leave with anything else than you deserve." He pulled away, "Be safe!"

Sango bowed her head before she turned and exited the village. It would take a couple of hours to get back home on foot, having left Kirara with her father and not taking a horse, but she enjoyed to the quiet moments to herself. Though a part of her couldn't help but always wonder about the past when she was traveling from contract to contract, thinking of when she was with Inuyasha, Kagome, Shippo, and Miroku looking for shards of the jewel and Naraku.

It had been five years since they killed the dark hanyou with the help of his own incarnations - Kagura, Kanna, and Byakuya. The world returned to normal afterward, as if the spider never threatened everyone's existence with his wicked desire for the jewel. Unless you were one of the unfortunate victims, then you could see the scars he left behind… like the one on her back from her possesed brother, the lines of graves in her compound, or the somber look she occasionally caught in her father's eyes.

When Miroku asked for a more deeper relationship - and when she realized he was _actually_ being serious - she remembered that look from her father, and she had to decline. At the time, Sango couldn't allow herself to settle down in Inuyasha's village and start a family. While her father didn't admit or ask it of her, she knew he would need her for rebuilding the compound and training new blood. He did protest - telling her it was time for her to marry, that the monk was a good man at heart - but she ignored him, because like her, family came first. He wanted what he thought was best for her and she wanted what was best for him.

And sitting in a village of nowhere, inside a small, dank hut with his polearm covered in dust and unused as he blamed himself for what happened to Kohaku and the rest of the clan was not what was best for him.

Naraku's death did give her father some peace, and together they returned to the empty compound with Kirara and began to rebuild. After a year, they had trained three more slayers and their families living there. By the end of the second year, the place began to feel much like before. By the fourth year, her father met a woman, Hitomi, he saved from a rogue snake yokai on the way back home. She wasn't too bad honestly, but far more traditional than her own mother was. They married shy of five months ago, her father seemed the happiest he had been since - and that was all that mattered to her.

Her father brought up the topic of marriage to her a couple of weeks ago when they had gotten word that Lord Takeda had finally settled with a noble woman, something that seemed more out of necessity than want. The 'snotty-nose' lord was one of only two men who ever showed a genuine interest in her, admiring her strength instead of being intimidated by it, so it was only natural that her concerned father nudged her and asked, " _Is there anyone else?" "When will you marry? Start a family?" "I want you to be happy, Sango."_

Now at the age 21, Sango was a bit 'old' (she felt far from it) for a woman with no husband or children. Kagome assured her she wasn't 'old', that many people in her time are usually still in school at that age, but people in Kagome's time didn't start professionally slaying demons at 11 like she did. People grow up and die faster here, even if they live simple lives. The future miko would wave her point away, saying that either way she was still young and could bare as many children as she wanted even if she waited another 5 years. _Father wouldn't wait that long_

Once he passed away, another headman would take his place. As a _normal_ woman, she was ineligible to be chosen despite she was the second-oldest yokai taijiya in the compound, the one who helped train the current clan, and the one who brought in the most coin as she preferred the contracts that would take her far. She fiddled with the strap of her weapon as she thought, _None of that matters. I have no interest being a head_ _ **woman**_ _. It would only stop me from traveling as much as I do._

But her father worried and always brought up her future, because he didn't want to see her old, poor and alone, too crippled to lift hiraikotsu to earn money and with no children to help her, completely homeless. That's where he saw her heading. Sango never saw herself growing old, she saw herself fighting until she found a yokai strong enough to kill her. Unless…

A familiar growl brought her attention to the sky, seeing a male taijiya waving at her while he rode her usual feline companion. Sango smiled and waved back; it was Tamotsu, one of the first slayers they trained during the rebuilding. He was a nice, good man, but there were times where it was a bit hard to look at him. If Kohaku was alive, they would have been the same age… He would have liked him.

"Need a lift?" The younger man yelled, the winds whipping his shaggy brown hair.

"Sure!" Kirara landed in front of her, and she was on the large cat and into the air in seconds. "I take it went well?" Tamotsu had taken Kirara for an emergency - a catfish yokai gone mad in a large lake. Generally, they could be reasoned with and she would have gone herself, if only catfishes didn't weirdly dig up old feelings for her.

"It was really strange… He saw us -" He patted Kirara, "- And then he said something about not wanting to deal with us again. I told him this the first time we met but he didn't believe me and said he'll find another woman. Then he took off into the river and I lost him."

Sango burst into laughter. _Oh gods, it was the same one!_ When Tamotsu gave a strange look over his shoulder, she quieted down to giggles. _He still hasn't found anyone either, huh… I'm in the same boat as a catfish._

"Am I missing something?"

"It's nothing. Just old memories…"

The two stayed in a comfortable silence until the gates of the compound came into view. They heard the guards announce their arrival as Kirara flew over, then landed in front of the second largest building - her father's house. "I'm home!"

Sango noticed a small wrapped package and letter, both addressed to her, the pink flower 'sticker' as a seal made her smile. _Kagome!_ She grabbed the parchment and hurried to her room. She removed her weapons and bags, and kneeled on the mat in the center of her quarters before she used a small knife to cut the seal.

 _I know it's been a while since I last wrote back. Things have been so hectic with Izayoi. She is as stubborn as her father._

Sango smiled at that, thinking the little girl had a bit more of her mother in her instead but kept reading.

 _Shippou went off to that fox academy again, he is taking another test. I'm confident he'll pass this one like the last!_

 _The next village over is considering Miroku as their head monk, can you believe it? I'm not sure if he is holy enough for that. :P_

The line made her smirk, fully agreeing, before squinting at the last character. _What does that mean again...? Oh right, it's a face!_ She continued reading,

 _The package is a children's book for the orphan girl you told me about. It does have one or two modern words in it, I put a note inside about it._

 _Oh~ and biggest news for last… We're expecting another child!…_

Her eyes trailed off and she folded the paper closed before she finished the last few lines, stacking it with the rest of the letters she ever received from her friend for the past years in a wooden box. _Kagome pregnant with her second child_. Sango thought as she made her way to the cleaning room. She was happy for her without question, it was just so strange… They all thought Sango would be first to have children with Miroku until it was clear their relationship wouldn't take off.

She scrubbed her skin free from the dirt and blood, rinsed the bulk of it off, then grabbed a cleanser that Kagome gifted her for her birthday a few months ago. Once she was clean and satisfied with the soft scent of sakura the product left on her skin, she redressed in fresh clothing, reapplied her usual pink eyeshadow, grabbed the wrapped book and made her way into the garden where a lone gravestone stood under an Ume tree.

Sango knelt and checked for weeds though she knew it was clean as she had done so just the day before, then brushed off some petals that had fallen on the stone. She stood and clasped her hands in a silent prayer, before leaving the empty home. She bowed her head in greeting to the villagers that smiled and waved as she made her way out of the gated center and to its outskirts. The orphan girl, Rin, lived in a rundown shack at the edge, near a small stream.

 _Why_ her father insisted to leave the poor girl out there, she would never know. It was very unlike him and she couldn't raggle an honest answer out him, it seemed he didn't want the girl here. He even scolded her when he found out she had fixed up the shack to ensure it wouldn't leak in the rain. "Rin?" Sango asked after knocking on the cracked door, taking note of the damage. _Hmm, how did that happen?_ The door slowly opened, the big brown eyes looking up at her seemed happy to see her.

"Remember my friend, Kagome? The one I told you about? She got something for you." Sango said, holding out the wrapped package. As the girl took the package and tried opening it, the woman took the chance to peek inside the hut and she gasped, everything inside was thrown around as if it had been ransacked. Hearing her, the child quickly walked outside and shut the broken door behind her. "Rin, what happened?"

The girl roughly shook her head and Sango couldn't help but sigh. Rin never told on whomever were the people who harassed her. In fact, she hardly spoke for someone so young. "Help me?" Rin asked, holding up the brightly colored book. Sango nodded and the two sat on the plush grass at the bank of the stream, the girl with the book in her lap as she helped the child with any words she struggled with. Their quiet moment together was short-lived.

A male voice boomed, "Sango! Here you are…" Rin immediately darted back into her hut before Sango could react. It was Bankotsu. She tried to hide her annoyance but she was never good at that. He, however, was very good at ignoring it. "What are you doing here with the orphan girl? I thought your father told you to forget about her…"

The woman rose to her feet, "Bankotsu-"

"Hey, relax!" He always stood far too close to her, as if he was trying to tower over her shorter frame and assert some dominance. "I'm not going to tell him a thing." He flashed a smile, the kind that made the village girls blush. It didn't have the same effect on her - she couldn't forget and forgive the things he had done in his previous life, and certainly not give him a pass just because he was physically attractive. "He is looking for you. Let me escort you back."

"Thank you for letting me know, but I can get back just fine on my own." Sango snapped as she walked past him, but the man continued on beside, keeping her fast pace without issue.

"Outside the gates, anything can be lurking. It would be devastating if I left and you got hurt…"

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes, "There is nothing out here that I can't handle."

"You're right." Bankotsu smiled, "You're the strongest woman I know."

She gave a side look, the compliment unsettling her just a bit. "Thanks…?"

"And I…" He turned in front her, blocking her path. "I am the strongest man in the village." _Without halberd, that is debatable._ "And a strong, handsome man like me deserves a strong, beautiful wife, don't you think?"

Sango stepped around him once more, vaguely replying, "A man _could_ be deserving of a happy marriage."

This time, Bankotsu did not play the fool, catching her tone, "You don't believe I've changed…"

"People don't change so drastically."

"You know, I was told you tried to kill Inuyasha the first time you met."

Sango paused, glaring at the taller man. "Because I was **lied** to. He proved on the same day he wasn't that kind of man. You have no excuse for the years you spent killing in cold blood."

"War is not a reason?" He countered, coming up beside her once more. "I was paid to kill men as you are are paid to kill yokai."

She continued walking, the gates thankfully in view. "It's not the same, and you know it."

"And these past 5 years are not enough to prove I have changed? How many more years would you need?"

She hated how he was making her doubt his character. She was right, wasn't she? The man killed and tortured for years… She also had a feeling the only other remaining member and still close confidant to him, Jakotsu, never stopped. Someone can't just be _normal_ after all that, can they? Even then, her opinion on him shouldn't have mattered. "I don't know why you ask me."

Bankotsu smirked, "Because I deserve the strongest and most beautiful woman here."

Her footsteps slowed, _He can't mean…_ "I'm not ready for marriage." She blurted out, waving to the guard to open the gate for them.

"Don't be like that." He started, taking the chance to stand very close again as the guard fiddled with the gate. "At your age, you must be longing to start a family. It's the last thing this place needs, right? A family of your own blood…"

Sango slapped away the hand that was trying to make its way around her waist, "You don't know anything about what I want, Bankotsu." She thanked the gods that he no longer followed her when she walked past the guard. Perhaps he will finally drop his fantasies.

She announced her arrival again once she stepped through her home's main door, this time being greeted by her father. "Ah, what happened?" Her father asked knowingly.

"Nothing that won't pass." She replied with a smile. "What did you need?" He told her of a contract to kill a bear yokai that would take her far but the pay was very good - she would likely spend a total of 10-12 days away from the compound.

"Now if its too far..., I understand."

"No, father, it's fine. I'll take Kirara with me. I might stop by Inuyasha's village on the way back."

"Good, good. Yes, see your friends."

"Let me start packing-"

"Are you leaving already?" Her step-mother appeared in the main room, her long black hair flowing behind her. "You just got back!"

Sango bowed her head in greeting before replying, "The sooner I leave, the sooner I'll return!"

Hitomi pouted, "Very well, but be careful out there."

The taijiya packed enough provisions for the long travel, grabbed Kirara and checked on Rin one last time for setting off to the Mikawa province.

 **End of Chapter 1**

 **Author's Note:** TBH, I wasn't expecting any reviews when I first posted up this story and so getting something like 5 in a week or so, I was like '...What?' And they kept trickling in for another month. Much more than I was expecting for this pairing. There are _dozens_ of us! _**DOZENS**_!

So when I'm a bit blah about writing, I usually go and read some fics for the pairing I'm trying to write… Anything. I'm not too picky unless the characterization is way too out there for no reason or there's character bashing of anyone. But… Uh. Wow. That doesn't work for these two. There is like almost nothing (that isn't just fun smut which is nice but not what I was looking for)! Especially anything in the past year. And whatever is there is only like 2 chapters. D: THAT'S TERRIBLE.

The reason this suddenly got an update is because~ I actually wrote a (rough) outline for it! :D I've never written an outline for any of fics, which I have come to see that's a **terrible** thing -looks at her two oldest stagnant fics-

Little shout out to Dunkelgelb from AO3. Bankotsu was on the bottom of the list for 'Sort-of Gaston' stand-ins but after some time, and re-watching a bit of band of seven episodes, I decided that would be better (and more 'different') than choosing another main character from the show.

Can I just say I HATE writing first chapters? I hate it so, so, so much. I feel like the majority of my chapter 1s suck hard. Like I just want to write with everyone already set up in the same room already damn it! lol.

But I hope you all enjoyed chapter anyway! Thanks for all the reviews, favs and likes!


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